Alfred wilkinson



"(No ModeL).

A. WILKINSON.

STEAM BOILER FURNAGE.

No. 541,448. y Patented June 18, 1895.l

FIC 2 Tus nonms pneus' co. Puma-umn., WASHINGTON. n4 c.

UNrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED WILKINSON, OF BRIDGEPORT, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE WILKINSON MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

STEAM-BOILER FURNACE.v

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 541,448, dated June 18, 1895.

Application iiled April 21,1894. Serial No. 508,429. (No modem,

To all whom t may concern:

Beit known that I, ALFRED WILKiNsoN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Bridgeport, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Steam-Boiler Furnaces, of which the following is a specification.

Myinvention relates to a furnace of the character shown in my Letters Patent numbered 480,538, dated August 9, 1892, one object of my present invention being to provide a more acceptable form of ash dischargerthan the rotary drum shown in said patent, and a further object being to provide means whereby the mass of fuel on the grate can be readily discharged therefrom in case of emergency.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal sectional view of sufficient of a boiler-furnace to illustrate my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan View of the rear extensiongrate detached, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of part of the feedhopper.

A is the boiler; B, the front wall of the furnace; O, the bridge wall, and D the inclined grate, the bars of said grate being connected by rods a to a rock shaft D', so lthat as the latter is vibrated, the bars will be reciprocated. The upper ends of the grate bars are supported by a saddle II and the lower ends of the bars are supported by a hollow girder I forming a blast box, the grate bars being hollow and having openings in their inclined front faces for the passage of air which enters the bars from the blast box I through a series of openings b, as in the patented structure.

E is the feed hopper and e is a pocketed feed roll whereby a given quantity of coal is fed regularly over the grate bars, down which it flows in a comparatively thin stream, being burned to ashes by the time it reaches the base of the grate.

One object of my present invention is to automatically remove the ashes as they accumulate at the base ofthe grate without other mechanism than the reciprocating grate bars, and this object I accomplish in the following manner:

I attach to the rear end of the hollow girder I a series of short grate sections F, these grate sections being tied together at their outer ends by bolts f, thereby forming a fixed grate which projects under the overhanging portion c of the bridge wall C, sufcient space being left betweensaid overhanging portion of the bridge wall and the -top of the grate F to permit the ashes to pass over said grate and to fall from the end of the same into the ash pit .I below. The overhanging portion c of the bridge wall is hollow so that water can circulate therein in order to prevent the hot ashes 6o from burning it away.` The ashes accumulate on the fixed grate F as shown in Fig. 1 but by the action of the reciprocating grate bars the mass of ashes iscontinually pushed rearward on the grate, the rear portions of the mass dropping from the grate. Hence the ashes are automatically removed as the fuel descends over the grate and all complicated ash discharging mechanism is dispensed with.

It will be understood that the details of the 7o extension grate may be modified without departing from the main features of my invention and where necessary the outer end of the bars may be supported to give strength to the structure. 7 5

By carrying the fixed grate bars beneath the overhanging Abridge wall, as shown, the mass of ashes fills thespace between the two, and forms a seal between the ash pit and the combustion chamber of the furnace thus pre- 8o venting any inflow of cold air from the ash pit.

It will be understood that my improved grate can be applied to furnaces other than steam boiler furnaces without departing from my invention.

The fuel hopper E rhas in the front an opening t' in line with the upper surface of the straight inclined grate, whose upper end is contiguous to the said opening and the other end in the lower part of the fire chamber, as 9o shown in Fig. 3, so that in case of emergency,

a bar or pusher can be used to force the mass of fuel downward onto the grate and into the ash pit, or for the purpose of loosening the fuel when it cakes or sticks upon the grate and beneath this opening t' is a projecting shelf fm, which receives the fuel escaping from the hopper through said opening.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patloo ent 1. The combination in a furnace, of the inclined reciprocating grate bars; with a xed extension grate at the base of the inclined bars upon which xed grate the ashes accumulate and from which they are pushed by the reciprocating bars of the grate, substantially as specified. Y

2. The combination in a furnace, of the inclined reciprocating grate bars, with a fixed extension grate at the base of the inclined bars, upon which ixed grate the ashes accumulate and from which they are pushed by the reciprocating bars of the grate` and an overhanging bridge wall between which and the rear end of the Xed grate the ashes accumulate so as to seal the ash discharge opening against the inlet of air from the ash pit, substantially as specified. i

3. The combination of the inclined reciprocating grate bars, a ixed bearing therefor at the base, and an extension grate composed of a series of sections bolted together and to the said fixed bearing bar, substantially as specified.

4. The combination of the straight inclined grate bars, with the fuel hopper at the upper end of the saine, said hopper having in front an opening in line with the upper surface of said grate bars, and contiguous to the upper ends of the bars whose other ends are in the lower part of the tire chamber, whereby a slice bar may be caused to touch every portion of the upper surface of the grate, substantially as described.

5. The combination of the straight inclined grate bars, the fuel hopper at the upper end of the same in the front an opening contiguous to the upper ends of the bars and in line with the upper surfaces of the same, the other ends of said bars being in the lower part of the fire chamber, whereby a slice bar may be caused to clear every portion of said grates, and a projecting shelf for receiving the fuel which escapes from said opening, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

ALFRED WILKINSON. Witnesses:

FRANK E. BECHTOLD, JOSEPH H. KLEIN. 

